Background

Vance McDonald walked on to the Rice football team in 2009. The Kinesiology major played all four years and ended his career as a consensus All-C-USA tight end.

McDonald is from Winnie, Texas and is the son of a former linebacker at the University of Texas. In high school he won district titles in both his junior and senior year, and he also competed in track and basketball.

Draft Process

At his pro day, he started slowly with a couple of drops but came on strong and caught everything after. He showed good movement and was explosive through the hips. He helped himself with a strong showing in the blocking drills.

A total of 40 representatives from 30 NFL teams were on hand during his pro day at Rice.

Interesting Facts

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Despite Vance McDonald's size, his time in the Rice offense was spent primarily in the slot receiver position. He was widely considered an unknown prospect until he turned heads during Senior Bowl week.

McDonald not only played out of position on offense, but also finished his last year at Rice as the team's long snapper.

His hometown of Winnie, Texas has a population of less than 3,500 people.

Observations

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Vance McDonald's size and experience in the slot could mean a team would like to use him as a mismatch on the edge. His ability to block out of the position could help a NFL offense in the running game or read option game.